Sump filters
- Thread starter Mr22s
- Start date
maybe just change the media. I was told that the bioballs are not as good as the ceramic rings, so will check this out with my LFS. cheers jk
Hi all,
Marine aquarists have gone away from trickle filters partially because they are so efficient ("nitrate factories"), but for fresh water aquarists, where we can easily remove nitrate by water changes and growing plants this is an advantage not a disadvantage.
cheers Darrel
If you don't mind the noise "wet and dry" trickle filters are the Rolls Royce of filters, especially for rheophilic fish with high oxygen (O2) requirements. The reason for this is that they have a huge gas exchange surface (from the film of water running over the filter media), as the film of water runs across the filter media CO2 diffuses out of the water and oxygen diffuses in. The conversion of ammonia (NH3) to nitrite (N02) and then nitrate (NO3) uses a lot of oxygen, so high oxygen improves biological filtration and high levels of CO2 make breathing more difficult for fish (CO2 diffuses out from the blood through the gills more slowly) so adding O2 and losing CO2 is a win-win situation.
Marine aquarists have gone away from trickle filters partially because they are so efficient ("nitrate factories"), but for fresh water aquarists, where we can easily remove nitrate by water changes and growing plants this is an advantage not a disadvantage.
Depends a little bit upon the nature of the filter, if you have a fine spray of water and a tower, ensuring that the ball surfaces are wet, bioballs are really good. Problems can occur with smaller media in towers (if you don't have a pre-filter) where you can get channelling and clogging. I like ceramic rings for canister filters, but it is nothing like as important for "wet and dry" filters where nearly any media (Bioballs, Alfagrog, "biocell moving bed media", hydroleca, ceramic rings) that has relatively coarse spaces between it will do.
cheers Darrel